Tubular medical instruments of this type are used, for instance, in the configuration as needle holder, in endoscopic surgery. Because of increasingly stringent hygienic demands, it is more and more often required that tubular instruments, particularly those comprising hollow spaces such as hollow shafts, should be configured so that they can be at least partially dismantled so that they can be submitted to thorough cleansing and sterilization, preferably by steam.
A generic tubular medical instrument, configured as a medical forceps, is reported in DE 43 07 539 A1. This known tubular instrument can be broken down for cleansing and sterilization into three main groups: the tool actuation element configured as a push-pull rod, the hollow shaft, and the handle. The coupling mechanism for connecting the push-pull rod and the hollow shaft, in this construction, is configured as a bayonet-type connection. The bayonet-type connection has proved itself in practice, but its use in installing the instrument requires a certain amount of practice.
It is consequently the object of the invention to perfect a tubular medical instrument in such a way that the tool actuation element and the hollow shaft can be detachably connected to one another by a coupling mechanism that is essentially without free play and also simple to operate.